On March 18, Giorgi Khishtovani, Director at PMC Research, presented the outcomes of the applied research "Analyzing Competitiveness of the Hospital Sector and its Value Chain in the City of Tbilisi – Using Smart Specialisation Methodology Components.”

PMC Research, within the European Neighborhood Program for Agriculture and Rural Development III (ENPARD III), is working together with Care Austria to promote rural development in the municipality of Mestia in Georgia.

At the end of January and at the beginning of February, PMC Research conducted four public discussions and presentations in Kutaisi, Zugdidi, Telavi and Akhaltsikhe about the outcomes of four value chain analyses of four agricultural products, namely tomatoes, laurels, carrots and blackberries.

In the second quarter of 2019, Georgian economic climate has slightly improved. In this period, Georgian economists assessed Georgia’s present economic situation positively, However, the assessment of pres- ent economic situation in this quarter has deteriorated compared to the first quarter of 2019 and the second quarter of 2018. In the second quarter of 2019, Georgia’s economic situation in the next six months has also been assessed positively by Georgian economists. In this quarter, expectations in six months has slightly improved compared to the first quarter of 2019; Not- withstanding, the expectations in six months of Q2 2019 has deteriorated compared with the Q2 2018.

In March 2019, in Georgia the hotel price index increased by 5.1% compared to February 2019. The prices of hotels in Tbilisi increased by 4.2%. In March 2019, compared to February 2019, the increase of hotel prices in Georgia, can be linked to increased number of tourists trips, as the number of international travelers trips in Georgia increased by 31.9%, while among the international travelers, the proportion who stayed in Georgia for 24 hours or more (classified as tourists) increased by 32.6%.
In March 2019, compared to March 2018, in Georgia the hotel price index increased by 1.1%. The number of international travelers in March 2019, compared to March 2018, increased by 6.4%, while among the international travelers the proportion who stayed in Georgia for 24 hours or more (classified as tourists) increased by 4.3%.
It has to be noted that 2018 was the first year, when share of nights spent by the international travelers in hotels exceeded the share of nights spent in friends and relatives house. In Georgia, in 2018, by international travelers, the highest share of nights were spent in hotels - 39.6%, 26.5% of nights were spent in friends and relatives house, while in guesthouses - 12.7% and in apartment - 11.7%.
In Tbilisi, among the 3-star hotels registered on booking.com website the highest share of prices ranges between 50-150 GEL, for 4-star hotels 150-300 GEL, while for guesthouses - 0-150 GEL

Analysis of FDI into Georgia for 2014-2018 revealed the following general findings:
In 2018, the financial, transport and communications, and energy sectors attracted the most FDI;
In 2018, Azerbaijan, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands were the countries investing most in Georgia;
Based on the cumulative amounts of FDI for the past five years, transport and communications (28.4%) is the most attractive sector for FDI in Georgia, while the agricultural sector is the least attractive (0.8%);
Based on the cumulative amounts, countries investing most in Georgia are: Azerbaijan, Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Turkey and USA.
The shares of FDI from China and the EU in the total FDI into Georgia have been increasing since 2017;
During 2017-2018, the share of reinvestments in the total FDI into Georgia increased, while the shares of equity and debt instruments decreased.

Human capital development is increasingly seen as the biggest driver of economic growth and the most powerful tool in the fight against poverty (World Bank, 2018). This idea is embodied in the World Bank’s new…

In February 2019, in Georgia the hotel price index decreased by 1.7% compared to January 2019. In Tbilisi, the hotel prices decreased by 1.9%. The decrease of hotel prices in Georgia, can be linked to decreased number of tourists' trips. In February 2019, compared to January 2019, the number of international travelers trips in Georgia decreased by 11.2%, while among the international travelers, the proportion who stayed in Georgia for 24 hours or more (classified as tourists) decreased by 19%.The number of international travelers visiting Georgia in February 2019, compared to February 2018, decreased by 0.4%. However, of these international travelers, the proportion who stayed in Georgia for 24 hours or more (classified as tourists) increased by 5.1%. This was expected to have a positive effect on hotel price increases, however in February 2019, compared to February 2018, in Georgia the hotel price index decreased insignificantly by 0.4%. This was mainly due to price decreases of guesthouses. While, the 3-star, 4-star and 5-star hotel price index increased by 2.2%, for guesthouses, the price index decreased by 2.9%.It's worth to be mentioned that the revenue from international travelers amounted 3.2 billion USD in 2018. According to countries, the most revenue from international travelers was received from Russia - 26.3% (USD 842 mln), followed by Turkey - 13.7% (USD 437 mln), and EU countries - 12.3% (USD 394 mln). In 2018, compared to 2017, the shares of revenues from internationals travelers from Turkey, Ukraine, Armenia and Iran decreased, while shares of Russia, EU countries and Iran increased.

The purposes of this policy paper are to present the priorities of the Government of Georgia (GoG) in economic diplomacy, to map economic diplomacy institutions, and to describe their functions. It also aims to present practical cases of conducting economic diplomacy. Case studies of selected EU Member States which have assigned strategic importance to economic diplomacy in achieving their economic development goals are presented and these contribute to the elaboration of recommendations for Georgia.

The aim of the project is to study the impact of the BRI on the countries of Central Asia and the South Caucasus (CASC) and ascertain how these countries individually and through regional cooperative efforts can maximize the benefits of the BRI and manage any potential risks.

PMC Research, in cooperation with regional civil society organizations of the Kakheti region, conducted value chain analysis on blackberry with an emphasis on the export potential to the European Union market.

PMC Research, in cooperation with regional civil society organizations of the Imereti region, conducted value chain analysis on tomato with an emphasis on the export potential to the European Union market.